Distinctively, Ed Diehl made Oregon a better place by running

By Jason Williams
Taxpayers Association of Oregon
OregonWatchdog.com

Candidate Ed Diehl’s race is one for the ages, as he left his party, his people, and his state in a better place than before he ran.

As stated before, Ed Diehl contributed to a 8% surge in voter turnout on election night. Diehl got people off the couch and got them involved.

While Diehl was running for Governor, he remained deeply involved in the Measure 120 campaign, which we now observe has made history with an astonishing 83% victory rate. There have been many high-stakes legal battles over the past few months regarding Measure 120, and Ed Diehl has been a key player in those legal battles.

While Ed Diehl has been running for governor, he has also launched a referendum effort on the No Tax Clawback petition to stop Governor Kotek’s $300 million tax on small businesses. Thanks to Ed, people have been gathering signatures throughout the election cycle, and there may be a petition or two qualifying for the November ballot because of Ed Diehl’s work.

While Ed Diehl was running for governor, he was also serving as a state representative during the 2026 Legislative Special Session. He blazed through a lot of press announcements and political battles during that wild 40-day Legislative Session. When the dust settled on the session, there were a lot of tax threats left dead on the floor and a Second Amendment bill that turned out to be favorable.

By running for Governor, Ed Diehl crisscrossed the state, held 100 meetings, and was seen by a million through TV and radio appearances. He made a positive impression on countless non-Republican voters who saw him for the first time.  This lifted his party and his message while sinking Kotek’s. This is one reason why 59% of Portland voters are upset with Governor Kotek.

Finally, people should recognize that this came at an incredible sacrifice on the part of Diehl and his family. I can attest that during the critical three months of the tax referendum campaign (Oct.-Dec.) Diehl, I, and others (Jodie Fleck “Mama liberty”, Nick Stark) were working 14-hour days to process and push those tax referendum petitions. I can only imagine that the hectic busy-work continued during the governor’s race campaign. It needs to be recognized that Ed Diehl gave everything he had.  He made Oregon a better place. He lifted all boats. He lifted our spirits. He lifted voter turnout. He elevated our ideas and our cause. Thank you, Ed, you done mighty good.